Alpine Troughs
Camassia
Alpine Troughs. There are instructions for making them in both the RHS
Encyclopedia and Geoff Hamilton's Practical Gardening Course but the directions
differ between the two.
Amanda
West Yorkshire
Pull out the weeds for email
Martin Froggatt
The making and use of hypertufa for troughs is straightforward and I have made
troughs (by casting) and covering sinks and polystyrene packing boxes.Dont make it
too sloppy, and if you value the condition of your hands wear rubber gloves
(marigold type).Another valuable tip is to let the finished trough dry out slowly
to avoid cracking.If you cover them with polythene sheeting the rate of evaporation
is slowed.You can also spray them with water to slow the process down.When
completely dry and planted up they can be aged by rubbing sphagnum moss into them
(transfering spores) or spraying with diluted manure or sour milk to encourage
lichen and moss growth.
Martin.
M K Rogerson
on the Scottish Rock Garden Club's site at
They have even mounted exhibitions at National Shows with troughs made to
the recipe given.
Martin R
Camassia <cama...@aol.comweeds> wrote in message
news:20000116103637...@nso-fg.aol.com...
Camassia
<mfro...@clara.co.uk> writes:
>The making and use of hypertufa for troughs is straightforward and I have
>made
>troughs (by casting)
Did you use wooden frames as suggested by the RHS or strong carboard boxes as
suggested by Geoff Hamilton, and if they were wooden how did you dismantle the
cast?
Camassia
<mk.ro...@ukonline.co.uk> writes:
>There are excellent instructions for making them with polystyrene fish boxes
>on the Scottish Rock Garden Club's site at
>
>www.srgc.org.uk
>
Have checked out this site and have the info you suggested, I'm even tempted to
join,
thanks
Rodger Whitlock
<mfro...@clara.co.uk> wrote:
>The making and use of hypertufa for troughs is straightforward...
>let the finished trough dry out slowly
>to avoid cracking.If you cover them with polythene sheeting the rate of evaporation
>is slowed.You can also spray them with water to slow the process down.When
>completely dry and planted up they can be aged by rubbing sphagnum moss into them
>(transfering spores) or spraying with diluted manure or sour milk to encourage
>lichen and moss growth.
Martin's comment about moisture is on point; concrete underdoes a very
slow solid-state hydration (chemical reaction with water) as it cures,
and this process is disturbed, to the detriment of the final strength
of the mix, if it dries out to early. I believe that a week under
moist conditions is recommended for optimum results.
After they are hard enough to handle, dump them into the nearest body
of water and leave them there for a year. This will get rid of any
excess lime and condition them nicely so they later win prizes at
shows for "most lichenous trough" and "mossiest trough".
--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Howard Drury
For many years original stone troughs have been greatly prized by alpine
enthusiasts for growing choice specimens in natural stone. In the 1930s
Clarence Elliott took some pig and horse troughs to the Chelsea Flower Show
before being banished from the main marquee for such artifices. Stone
troughs are difficult to obtain nowadays, expensive and heavy to transport.
Furthermore it is often necessary to drill drainage holes to give at least
one square inch of drainage hole to each square foot of trough area.
Various alternatives have been tried, some more successful than others. In
the late 1940s and 1950s many people obtained glazed sinks, often quite deep
with a high glaze finish sometimes using them to grow alpines, perhaps
coating them with a mixture of sharp sand, rubbed sphagnum peat and cement
to make them resemble a moss?covered, well?weathered natural stone trough.
The old scullery sinks, which were shallower and brown in colour, were
sometimes used un-coated.
Experiments have also been made with clay pots of varying designs,
fibreglass containers and even old chimney pots. Fine examples can be seen
in various gardens where slabs have been placed on breeze blocks or stone
blocks and edged with small sections of stone to create a table garden
effect. Large sections of tufa can best be employed in this manner.
The ratio of ingredients is normally taken as 1:1:2 (by bulk) using cement,
peat and sand. More sand and less peat leads to a stronger but more
concrete looking trough, whilst increasing the amount of peat will give a
moss?covered, soft?textured trough which in severe winters may be prone to
frost damage.
Glazed sinks should be thoroughly cleaned and coated with an adhesive
covering such as Unibond. Two or three coats are advisable and the last
coat mixed with sand and cement to give a bonding layer. The sand and
cement should be mixed dry and then moistened peat, which has been rubbed
through a 3/8" sieve, added and mixed.
When thoroughly combined, water can be added a little at a time until the
mixture is sufficiently moist to adhere to the vertical walls of a glazed
trough. The trough is then given a coating approximately 3/4 to 1 in.
thick, which is firmed into place with gloved hands and trowelled to leave a
natural?looking appearance. The trough should then be allowed to dry very
slowly; this can be aided by covering with damp hessian sacking etc.
Many people have experimented with the mixture to make troughs by using two
cardboard boxes, one placed inside the other leaving a gap of 1.5?2 ins.
wide all the way round. Two pieces of broom handle 2 ins. long are used to
provide drainage holes and ensure the bottom is the correct thickness, these
will be knocked out at a later date. Alternatively 1 in. diameter plastic
piping may be used and left in place. The mixture is placed in the bottom
of the larger cardboard box and the two broom handles or pipe sections
placed in position. The mixture is then consolidated around them as shown
in the diagram. The second box is then placed centrally in position and the
mixture can be eased gently in between the inner and outer layers of
cardboard until full. To prevent the inner box collapsing, bricks and sand
may be placed inside as it is necessary to firm down the mixture between the
inner and outer boxes using a piece of wood as a rammer. Once completed the
trough is covered with damp sacking and left to dry out slowly.
Two or three days later the cardboard can be torn off, the sections of broom
handle gently tapped out. This is the ideal time to take a wire brush,
trowel etc. and remove outer corners and abrade the trough to give a worn
appearance, exposing the peat. The trough will then moss over naturally and
this can be hastened by coating with sour milk, boiled rice water or,
ideally, fresh cow manure, especially if left in a grassy shady place.
A further advance is to take an original trough and take a moulding, using
either fibreglass or vinyl, which has to be melted in a special boiler and
poured around the original trough. It is kept in place with a wooden
framework around the trough. When set this leaves a rubber?like mould,
which can be used repeatedly to give an exact replica of the original
trough. Colouring agents are available to create sandstone or Cotswold
stone?like effects, or alternatively quarried and ground up natural stone
may be used to replace the sand, and here, to get the true effect of the
stone white cement should be used.
Planting should be done with great care and any plants selected must be
suitably grouped together within the confines of a trough. Invasive plants
should be avoided and sufficient room should always be allowed for the
plants to grow slowly together. The planting medium is often based on John
Innes No.1 with an additional 30% grit to ensure free drainage. This
medium is normally placed over a shallow layer of gravel or broken crocks,
which in turn may be covered with a woven polythene sheet to prevent the
soil fouling the drainage medium.
In larger troughs a small rock garden may be created to allow plants the
ideal planting environment, but this will depend on the plant selected and
the available space. Planting should be carried out at the correct depth
and firmly, the entire surface area can then be covered with a layer of
crushed stone, fine gravel etc.
Juniperus communis 'Compressa' and other very dwarf conifers are ideal for
troughs. Remember to select plants according to where the trough is to be
sited, taking into account aspect such as shade, exposure etc. Indeed with
larger troughs these are best planted in situ. Most troughs look best when
grouped together and linked with plantings of thymes, saxifrages and sedums,
which can be used to hide the bricks on which the troughs are raised from
the ground. All troughs should be raised off the ground at least 1?2 inches
to ensure free drainage. Among the most commonly used plants are Dianthus
alpinus in its various forms and colours; Globularia bellidifolia, only 2
inches high with small thistle?like heads of blue during summer, and the
semi?evergreen Cotoneaster congesta nana, ideal for creeping over the edge
of the trough.
One of the smallest hebes, Hebe buchananii 'Minor' is ideal and occasionally
offers its small white flowers and Veronica teucrium 'Blue Tit' forms a
little trailing mound up to 2 ins. high and will hang over the front edge of
the trough. Of the smaller slower growing saxifrages, perhaps the best
known is S. cochlearis minor, forming a small silver mound, which S.
oppositifolia 'Ruth Draper' is one of the best of the trailing forms
providing welcome colour during March and early April. Phlox douglasii
provides many named forms of bun?like plants that flower in June such as P.
'Kelly's Eye' and there are several even smaller forms.
Plants must not be allowed to go short of water during dry periods.
Generally, no feeding is required and provided suitable plants have been
selected at the outset, little or no pruning should be necessary. Do not
allow the taller growing subjects to become so high that they screen smaller
plants growing behind them. A certain amount of general maintenance will
improve the appearance of the trough. Weeds and unwanted seedlings can be
removed (with tweezers if necessary) and dead heading should be carried out
regularly, unless it is intended to collect the seeds. Top dress with fresh
grit to keep the trough looking tidy and to aid drainage. Alpine troughs,
therefore, must make the ideal form of gardening, particularly for those who
have little time to spare but want the enjoyment and pleasure of growing
rarities.
SUITABLE PLANTS
Alyssum serpyllifolium ? prostrate mats of silver foliage with yellow
flowers 1 in.
Antennaria dioica 'Minima' ? condensed form, 3in stems with pink flowers.
Arabis ferdinandi?coburgii 'Variegata' ? tiny variegated form white flowers
summer.
Erodium chamaedryoides 'Bishops Form' ? large pink flowers all summer, 3in.
Helichrysum milfordae ? white flowers over silver mats of foliage in summer,
1 in.
Morisia monanthos ? tiny tufts of foliage, minutes yellow flowers all
summer, 1 in.
Oxalis enneaphylla ? white flowers over silvery folded leaves 2 in.
Phlox douglasii in var. ? tough compact plants, covered in flower, early
summer.
Primula x bilekii ? pink flowers with white eye, early spring, 1in.
Saxifraga 'Cranbourne' ? blue?grey foliage, pink flowers in early spring
2in.
Silene acaulis 'Penduncalata' ? almost stemless pink flowers all summer 1
in.
Salix x boydii ? grey?green leaves, cream catkins in spring, slow growing 12
in.
The above information is taken from 'Alpines and Rock Plants' by Howard
Drury, published by Boxtree but now out of print although copies may still
be found in remainder shops etc.
FURTHER READING
There are many books available on the subject of Alpine Gardening and the
list below is only a very small selection.
Manual of Alpine Plants by W. Ingwerson
Propagation of Alpine Plants by Lawrence Hills
Rock Gardens by W. Schacht
Dwarf Bulbs by B. Mathew
In cases of difficulty please contact Landsmans Bookshop Ltd., Buckenhill,
Bromyard, Telephone 01885 483420 who stock a wide range of horticultural
books and offer a postal service. Please mention "Howard Drury " when
contacting Landsmans Bookshop.
The information given in this Fact Sheet is provided in good faith. It is
however of necessity general information and advice on the topic. Howard
Drury will not be under any liability in respect of the provision of such
advice and information and you are strongly advised to seek independent
advice on any particular gardening problems or queries you may have,
preferably from experts who can (when appropriate) inspect the problem
before providing advice.
(C) 1999. This material has been produced by Howard Drury and must not be
reproduced in part or full without the written consent of Howard Drury,
Kings Heath Birmingham, B13 0SJ.
JHD/ACD/14/03/99
Camassia <cama...@aol.comweeds> wrote in message
news:20000116103637...@nso-fg.aol.com...
> Just wondering if anyone out there has actually managed to make their own
> Alpine Troughs. There are instructions for making them in both the RHS
> Encyclopedia and Geoff Hamilton's Practical Gardening Course but the
directions
> differ between the two.
>
>
>
>
John Neale Baraclough
from toto...@mail.pacificcoast.net (Rodger Whitlock) contains these words:
> >completely dry and planted up they can be aged by rubbing sphagnum moss into them
> >(transfering spores) or spraying with diluted manure or sour milk to encourage
> >lichen and moss growth.
> After they are hard enough to handle, dump them into the nearest body
> of water and leave them there for a year. This will get rid of any
> excess lime and condition them nicely so they later win prizes at
> shows for "most lichenous trough" and "mossiest trough".
For others who enjoy mud play and lichen and moss on stone, I've
found this very effective; collect some fresh moss and lichens and
liquidise in the kitchen mixer with some old yoghurt.Add this to a
bucket in which a fresh cowpat has been mixed with a bit of water to
a glop.Mix.Sponge or wipe the glop on to your stone or trough and leave to dry.
If you can place the stone object under the drip of a shrub, north
side,the antique look will grow even faster.
The only problem is that the resulting pattern of lichens and
mosses attracts adults and children who like to pick; someone once
suggested I should write "please don't pick the lichen" in glop on stone...
Janet
--
janet.a...@zetnet.co.uk